chapter 3

Back to now.I was the one getting screwed over, but he was telling me not to make a big deal about it?

I laughed coldly and sat up to face Damien.

"Why shouldn't I care about what's mine? Commander Grey, you're using my job to impress that woman, and I'm the bad guy keeping haggling?

"Fine. If that's how you want to play it, I won't let you pin that on me for nothing. You want to give away my job? Tell Chloe to pay me three thousand dollars for it. Then I won't say another word. Otherwise, I'm going straight to your commanding officer to sort this out."

In my past life, no matter how hard I fought or how much I protested, Damien still gave my job to Chloe.

After Chloe stole my position, I obviously wasn't going to be friendly with her.

But Chloe kept trying to chat with me. When I wouldn't respond, she'd put on this pitiful act like I was bullying her.

Then she'd pretend to be brave and defend me to cover it up.

After a while, the most ridiculous rumors started spreading around the military base.

People said I was jealous that Chloe got the teaching job. They claimed I was bitter about losing out, and now I had it in for her.

Thank God Damien was such an upstanding guy who didn't let me get away with it.

Otherwise, poor Chloe—a widow with a child—wouldn't be able to survive.

I'd always been quiet and kept to myself. I was not good at socializing. Nobody believed me, and nobody stood up for me.

Every time I left the house, I could hear the other ladies whispering. I could feel their disgusted looks following me around.

Heaven had given me a second chance at life. This time, nobody was going to take what was mine without a fight!

If they wanted to mess with me, they were going to pay the price.

Damien was getting annoyed with how aggressive I was being. "Scarlett, my salary gives you a comfortable life. What do you need that three thousand bucks for?

"Chloe's family has no income now. If you take Owen's survivor benefits, how are Chloe and her son supposed to live?"

He was trying to guilt-trip me into backing down. Not happening.

I smiled at him, "Commander Spencer died way too young, and I feel terrible about that. But Chloe's not family to me. I'm not going to sacrifice my own interests to help her out.

"Chloe's a war widow. The government will take care of her. She bought herself a job with that money, so now she'll get a monthly salary. That's way better than living off survivor benefits, right? When you think about it, it's actually a pretty smart investment."

Damien's eyes narrowed. He looked seriously annoyed. "Jesus, Scarlett. When did you get so greedy?"

I looked down and gently rubbed my belly. There was a baby growing inside me.

"Raising kids is expensive. I wanted to teach so I could save money, but you're handing my job over to Chloe. I'm not walking away empty-handed.

"Give me three thousand bucks, and she can have the job. Otherwise, I'm going straight to the higher-ups. Then you two can be the scandal everyone's talking about!"

Damien looked even more irritated, so I pushed harder.

"I don't have anything to lose here. But Chloe just became a widow. If she gets a bad reputation on top of that, how's she going to survive?"

I wasn't backing down, so Damien slammed the door and left. Probably went to help Chloe come up with the cash.

I didn't feel bad about it at all. I just wanted my money.

Chloe could have the teaching job if she wanted it that badly.

The next day, I went for a walk and bumped into Chloe.

I couldn't stand her, so I started to walk away. But she grabbed my arm.

She talked to me all sweet and caring, like we were best friends who'd known each other forever.

"Scarlett, Damien told me you're mad at him because you didn't get the teaching job. That's not right. I think our main job is taking care of our families. The men protect our country, so we need to be their support back home. Don't you think?"

After her little lecture, Chloe changed her tune. She frowned and put on this pitiful look. "You're luckier than me. At least you don't have to work while you're pregnant."

Oh please. She was complaining but really just showing off. See? Even without a husband, men still jump to solve my problems. Aren't you jealous?

I pulled my hand away and ignored her sad act.

"Commander Spencer died serving his country. He was a real hero, and the nation will always remember what he did. As a war hero's widow, you should be proud of him. Why are you saying you have bad luck? Do you have some problem with the government?"

This was a time when people really honored sacrifice and patriotism.

Chloe was basically saying her life sucked because her husband died, and now she had to work. That sounded like she resented Owen's sacrifice.

Like she had issues with the country and the government.

That kind of thinking could get you in serious trouble. I figured I should help her see things the right way.

Being a military wife wasn't just for show. Chloe obviously realized what I was getting at. Her face went pale.

"I..."

I patted her shoulder and gave her an encouraging look. "Mrs. Spencer, women can do anything men can do. As long as you work hard, you'll be just fine.

"Commander Spencer was a hero everyone on this base respected. You can't let him down by giving up now. Just focus on your teaching job. If you run into problems, the military will help you out. You'll get by."

As soon as I finished talking, someone started clapping behind me.

I turned around and saw Megan Waksh, the political officer Derek Walsh's wife.

Her hair was pulled back perfectly, not a strand out of place. That was just like her—neat, efficient, and completely fair about everything.

That was why all the military wives came to her when they had problems. She always sorted things out.

"Well said!" Megan nodded at me approvingly, then turned to look at Chloe.

"Chloe, now that you have a job, just focus on doing it well. Owen's gone, so you need to stand on your own two feet. Otherwise, life's only going to get harder. If you need help with anything, come find me. I'll do what I can."

Chloe's eyes filled with tears, and she bit her lip until it turned white. "Megan, Scarlett wants me to pay her three thousand dollars. Where am I supposed to get that kind of money?"

Megan frowned. "Scarlett, what's this about? Are you bullying a war widow?"